Per rivals.com
ATLANTIC 10
The ceiling: Six bids
At a minimum: Four
Overview: The A-10 is No. 6 in league RPI, one spot behind the Big Ten and two spots ahead of the Pac-10. When just non-conference games are taken into account, the A-10 is fifth, one spot ahead of the Big Ten and two ahead of the Pac-10. There’s a four-way tie for the league lead in the loss column among Charlotte, Richmond, Temple and Xavier; the other league teams with an at-large shot are Dayton and Rhode Island.
The specifics: Temple basically is an NCAA lock, and surprising Richmond is the only other league contender that has a winning record against RPI top-50 teams and against RPI top-100 teams. Charlotte has reason to be the most nervous. The 49ers played a weak non-conference schedule and are 4-6 against RPI top-100 teams. Rhode Island is 3-5 against RPI top-100 teams, but the Rams’ non-conference schedule was much tougher than Charlotte’s.
The prediction: The A-10 will get at least five and easily could get six. A-10 teams will be pulling for Northern Iowa, Siena and Old Dominion to win their league tournaments. They’re also hoping the Pac-10 continues to be a jumbled mess and that the Big East and SEC teams on the bubble continue to do their best to play their way into the NIT.